Here is a five-part to-do list to ensure Derek Jeter finishes his career in a playoff race and isn't playing out the string in September

In his 20-year career, Derek Jeter has famously played only one game in which the Yankees were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. It's a great stat for a player known as a consummate winner — but if the Yankees' season continues at this pace, it will no longer be true by the time Jeter retires.

The Yankees dug themselves into a hole during the first half of Jeter's final season. They put 80 percent of their rotation on the disabled list, shook their heads at regular offensive struggles, and fell five games out of first place in the American League East.

But as the second half gets started Friday night at Yankee Stadium, manager Joe Girardi said he feels no need to address the team with some sort of impassioned speech about not giving up and making a real run at the playoffs.

"They know what they have to do, and they know where they want to go," Girardi said. "That's very, very clear from Day One in spring training, and nothing has changed."

So if some sort of fresh motivation won't do the trick, what can the Yankees do to actually improve in the second half and get their shortstop back into playoff contention? Here are a few ideas.

Play better: Seems way too obvious — and it's obviously more complicated than a two-word instruction — but almost across the board, the Yankees' offense is underperforming. Jacoby Ellsbury is having a fine year, but even his batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage are worse than last season and worse than his career numbers.

New catcher Brian McCann is slugging nearly 100 points lower than last season, new designated hitter Carlos Beltran is hitting 80 points lower than last season, and Alfonso Soriano underperformed so badly that he was released before the break.

McCann hit .366 in his final 10 games before the break, so maybe that's a good sign.

One elbow, one shoulder: The Yankees will surely explore trade upgrades for their depleted rotation, but few starting pitchers have more potential for down-the-stretch impact than Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda. The Yankees just have to hope those two can actually get healthy.

Tanaka is trying to avoid Tommy John surgery with a rest-and-rehab protocol for his torn elbow ligament, and Pineda is throwing bullpens again after several setbacks from an early May shoulder injury.

Those could provide a late August boost, but even if all goes well, it's unlikely they'll be back before that.

Search for arms: There's a chance the Yankees' lineup can improve without a major addition, but the pitching staff is thin and has workload problems that can only be solved by bringing in a new arm or two. With the Triple-A staff already depleted to help deal with the injuries, the Yankees might have to go shopping.

If the Rays trade David Price, it surely won't be within the division, so the Yankees might have to explore taking on an ugly contract like Cliff Lee's or taking a shot at a mid-rotation starter such as Ian Kennedy. The trick might be finding a team willing to take on a package of low-level prospects (which the Yankees have) rather than one standout upper-level minor-leaguer (which they don't have).

Give the kids a chance: The Yankees might not have the next Mike Trout waiting in the wings, but they do have some potential upgrades on their Triple-A roster.

Utilityman Jose Pirela was a Triple-A All-Star and can play five different positions, and outfielder Zoilo Almonte has shown good power against right-handers, which the Yankees' light-hitting lineup could use.

Most interesting of the call-up candidates is second baseman Rob Refsnyder, who was drafted in 2012 and is already knocking on the door to the big leagues. One of the better all-around hitters in the system, Refsnyder is primarily a second baseman, but has been getting time in right field lately at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Take advantage of Yankee Stadium: With plenty of games remaining against division opponents, the Yankees have a chance to play the teams they need to beat. That's a solid opportunity, and the schedule gets even more promising when considering the Yankees have more second-half home games than any other team.

Of course, to take advantage of that, the Yankees will have to actually win at home. So far, they're five games above .500 on the road and five games below .500 at home. They need that to change in the second half.